The New Normal

Small Talk

"Like I said, I am looking for Kylo." Rey led out a small smile, forgetting who she was with.

"Must be good. It's nearly 3 am and you're here looking for him despite knowing you'll get punished." Hux shook his head. "I mean, hmm, not to pry but does he punish you?"

Rey giggled at the thought, "More like a lecture, really. If anything, I punish him when he is in the wrong."

"Hard to imagine, I have only known one side of him and it's not pleasant. Imagine my surprise when you first came here. I thought he was making a prisoner of the scavenger girl but here you are, almost two years later, carrying his child."

"Children." Rey corrected.

"Children? Twins run in the family, no doubt it was not a big surprise."

Rey sipped her drink, "A little." She looked around the room and noticed his desk area full of papers. Hux had a display of small, modeled ships on one corner and his uniform laid out for the next day near his dresser. The walls were grey, navcomupter on one side and to her surprise, a plant by the wall. His quarters seemed tidy, and hard to believe, but tidier than hers and Ben's.

"I want to thank you again for defending me against the supreme leader the other day."

"You hate him, don't you?" Rey said nonchalantly, taking Hux by surprise. "I won't say anything. I hate Kylo too. It's Ben who I fell for."

"How? He is the same person at the end of the day."

Rey smiled and thought of the wonderful moments she had had with her future husband. "He is not. Trust me. You only see his dark side but his light...his light is someone you would want to have as a friend and in my case, as a husband and father."

Hux could not fathom the idea of Kylo Ren having a good side. He did hate him, that much he was aware and did not try to hide it. He hated him for taking on a regime which he had full command of until Kylo came into power. Why should Kylo be ruler when he was the better choice? Hux felt as if Kylo was ruining everything they stood for and did not know how to properly command such a massive army. It was only until Rey sprayed her influence on Kylo that Hux noticed the decisions being made were making sense.

Although he did hate taking orders from Kylo Ren, Hux had to admit, "You...you would make a good empress."

Rey almost choked on java juice. "Oh, no, no, no. No, thank you. Kylo has this idea of me ruling alongside him, but I am not sure I would want to take on that responsibility. I am nothing more than a scavenger from Jakku. I only advise him sometimes and even then, I do not approve of the things he does. I speak up when it benefits the people but no more than that."

Hux kept his eyes fixed on Rey's pregnancy. This was the first time he had a proper conversation with the girl. To him, she was nothing more than another passenger on board. Yet, she was not. Hux had grown curious over the last few months on Kylo's and Rey's relationship. He was not being nosey, he only wanted to know how it came to be.

"He could not do it." Hux noticed Rey's questioning eyes. "We went to Geus to see preparations for the new recruits."

"You mean your child slaves." Rey said with a huff.

"We were supposed to dispose of those who lack the skills and who did not condition well, like we always do. Only this time," Hux looked beyond Rey recalling his memory, "he...he never gave the order. We entered the facility, toured the grounds, and selected those we will be needing. When they asked him if they should get more children, he lost it. He chocked the admiral in charge of the facility and destroyed many things in his path."

Before Rey could respond, Hux's comm on the wall went off. He rose from his chair and pressed the button to silence the loud device. "Sir, the supreme leader requests your presence on the bridge. It seems Lady Rey has gone missing."

Hux turned to Rey, "Tell the supreme leader I think I saw her heading to the bridge."

"Very well, sir." The nervous voice from the comm replied.

Rey could finally sense Ben nearby and began to walk to the door. "I better go then before I get you in trouble." As strange as this encounter was, Rey was grateful for it. She never pressed Ben about his business, only attended some meetings, and knowing he was changing was exciting news for her. She always believed there was still light in Ben Solo and him not being able to continue with how they went about recruiting, was something to celebrate.

"He is changing. Ren is changing. I have noticed for months, even before you announced your pregnancy. Something is happening to him and as much as I hate to admit it, I rather like the change. He threatens me less and even lets me take charge of some operations. We are not friends, I still hate him however, this is...something else."

Rey smiled at him. "You're not so bad, general, despite what my fiancé says about you."

As she left the room, she was careful not to be seen leaving Hux's quarters. Knowing Kylo, he would somehow find Hux at fault for her night adventure. Rey walked down the corridor until she found her love coming towards her. She knew Ben could feel the love radiating from her through their bond but was not sure how much he could feel. Rey loved Ben like no other, despite his troubles. He was slowly changing, and she was glad she was not the only one who had noticed.

"Rey! Where were you? Why are you walking around? That damn Wookie can't even do his job right. I have everyone looking for you. I wa-"

Rey interrupted Ben's lecture as she tiptoed to wrap her hands around his neck, pulling his lips down to meet hers, in a passionate kiss. After a second or two, Ben eased into the kiss and wrapped his arms around her waist, bringing her close into an embrace.

As Ben broke the kiss, he whispered, "You're still in trouble." He ran his hand in Rey's hair. "What's wrong?"

Rey still had her arms wrapped around his neck, "Nothing. I want to show you how much I love you."

Ben chuckled at his dyad. "I love you too, darling, but you're still in trouble. Why are you out of the room?"

Suddenly Rey remembered why she had started her night adventure. "Ah! Ben...Ben, love." Ben could feel pure excitement exuberating from Rey. "I had a dream." Ben smiled at her excitement, seeing her happy was all he ever asked for.

"I saw them." Rey noticed Ben's confusion. "I saw them, in my dream. A vision." Rey felt happy tears sting her eyes. "Our babies...I saw them...I felt them quite clearly...I know it was them in my dream. Trust me when I say I felt their light...they were so pure...Ben...Ben...they were beautiful."